


Pick of the Litter (The Fluffiest Fluff To Ever Fluff, For The Birth Of Bre)

by ryekamasaki



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Fluff, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-17
Updated: 2016-06-17
Packaged: 2018-07-15 14:41:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7226587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ryekamasaki/pseuds/ryekamasaki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The tale of three boys and the life they live together. Includes kittens, kitchen bans, and plenty of cuddles.</p>
<p>Absolute pure fluff for my darling Bre on the occasion of their birth, because I love them and they deserve everything in the entire world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pick of the Litter (The Fluffiest Fluff To Ever Fluff, For The Birth Of Bre)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SecretMaker (sacredkind)](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=SecretMaker+%28sacredkind%29).



Koushi whines and tucks his face under Ryuu’s chin, pressing his nose into the soft skin on the underside while he pouts. Ryuu tries to wiggle away from his cold nose, but Koushi is determined. He pushes up a little higher, brushes his lips against the closest skin and whines again. “Please, Ryuu.”

 

Ryuu loops an arm over Koushi’s shoulders and sighs, but Koushi can tell it’s a playful one, one that tells Koushi that he’s being played with. “I dunno, Koushi.”

 

“Ryuu, come on.” Koushi pulls back, just far enough that he can keep his arms still around Ryuu’s waist as he looks up at him with the most pleading eyes he can manage. “Please, Ryuu, bake me something sweet.”

 

After a very (fake) put upon sigh, Ryuu rubs his nose in Koushi’s hair and laughs. “Okay, okay, what do you want, then?”

 

Koushi hums a pleased sound, squeezes Ryuu hard around the waist, which gets him another laugh. “Cake? No, cupcakes? With lots of frosting!”

 

“Of course. Extra sugar for Suga, as always.” Ryuu grins at the joke as he pushes Koushi away and heads to the cupboard to gather ingredients. “What flavor today? Vanilla?”

 

“With strawberries. For Kei.” Koushi beams across the kitchen as Ryuu populates the counter with all the things they need. “Can I help this time? I promise to be extra careful.”

 

Ryuu raises an eyebrow at him with a stern expression on his face. “You know the rules, Koushi. Sugas are not allowed to cook. It’s for your own good, you know.”

 

Koushi pouts even though he knows that Ryuu’s right. It’s not really his fault. He just gets distracted and forgets to keep an eye on things, or to stir them on time. He still can’t live down the time he accidentally left the fork in the microwave meal when he put it back in to cook longer. They’re lucky the thing didn’t catch on fire, and now the only things Koushi’s allowed to do in the kitchen are eat, get snacks, and make tea. He’s lucky that the other two like to cook so much anyway and don’t mind making sure he’s well fed (even if they do tend to tease him first).

 

On a trip across the kitchen to get mixing bowls and measuring cups, Ryuu stops and cups Koushi’s face in his hands, leaning down to press a smacking kiss against his lips. Koushi can’t help but laugh at how exaggerated and cute it is. Ryuu flicks the radio on as he passes by, and then he’s all ready to start measuring and mixing, and Koushi knows he’s not allowed to help, so instead he sings along to the radio and sways around the kitchen, careful not to get too into Ryuu’s space.

 

A few songs have played by the time that Ryuu finally slides the oven door closed after slipping the pan in, and Koushi takes advantage of the few minutes they have while the cupcakes bake before they have to start the frosting to pull Ryuu into his arms and across the floor with him. Ryuu’s socks slide on the smooth flooring, and they playfully fight over who leads until they’re both laughing and can hardly stand straight, draped over each other and hugging. They slowly straighten up, still giggling a little, and Koushi nuzzles his face against Ryuu’s for a minute before they separate and turn toward the counter.

 

Koushi loops his arms around Ryuu’s middle while he sifts ingredients for the frosting into a bowl. Once everything is all measured and dumped together, Ryuu tugs at Koushi’s arms until he comes to stand next to him instead, and hands him the mixer. Koushi can feel his face brighten, since it’s not often he gets to help, and the frosting is the best part to help with. Unfortunately, Koushi’s luck in the kitchen means the first whir of the mixer’s blades spew a giant cloud of powdered sugar all over the counter and himself, even a bit getting on Ryuu, who had backed out of Koushi’s way.

 

The snorting sound Koushi can hear coming from behind him tells him that Ryuu’s trying (not very hard) to hide his laughter. Koushi knows better. Ryuu probably thinks this is hilarious. Koushi sighs and decides to finish in the kitchen before bothering to wipe the sugar off, seeing as he’s likely to only get more messy anyway. There aren’t any mishaps after that, the frosting comes together quickly after the initial sugar cloud, and by the time that’s done Ryuu already has the cupcakes cooling on top of the stove.

 

After the mixer is shut off and Ryuu takes the bowl to scoop the frosting into the piping bag, Koushi realizes that he can hear what had been a light rain shower has turned into a heavy storm, rain beating against the windows ruthlessly. Koushi glances at the clock, hopes that Kei has found someplace to avoid the storm instead of walking in it, since it’s about time for him to be on his way home.

 

Ryuu frosts the cupcakes in a delicate swirl, and lets Koushi stick the strawberries on top since they don’t involve any actual thought. They’re just putting the last couple together when there’s a clatter at the door, and they both poke their heads out of the kitchen to gaze across the living room. The picture that greets them is not one that they would’ve expected.

 

It’s Kei, like they knew it would be, but not only is he soaking wet from the storm, but he’s cradling what looks like a shoebox carefully in his arms. He’s trying valiantly to slip off his sodden shoes without disrupting the box, which is possibly wetter than Kei is. His glasses are completely covered in raindrops, and Koushi doesn’t think he can even really see out of them. He finally manages to fight his shoes off, drops his bag off to the side, and uses one hand to pull his glasses off while the other cradles the box against his chest. He freezes when he looks up and finally realizes that they’re watching him.

 

Koushi can see the wheels in Kei’s mind come to a stuttering halt, and then, after about twenty seconds of staring blankly at them, the tips of his ears turn pink and he adopts his most unaffected expression, which does not fool either of them a bit. “Mind getting me a towel? I’m wet.”

 

Ryuu twitches next to him, torn between getting Kei a towel because he IS obviously soaked, and asking what’s in the box in Kei’s arms. Koushi knows that they all know that there’s not actually shoes in the box, especially the brand new ones that Kei said he needed to buy. Kei just barely raises an eyebrow, and Ryuu scurries down the hallway to the linen closet to get one of their huge fluffy towels. Koushi joins him as he brings it to Kei, still in the entryway, still clutching the box like a lifeline.

 

Kei lets Ryuu drape the towel over his head, and then they hear it. The box squeaks. All three heads swivel down to look at the box, and Koushi thinks it’s funny because Kei at least knows what’s in it. Kei turns a bit pink in the cheeks and sets his mouth in a frown.

 

Koushi looks at him questioningly. “I thought you were buying new shoes?”

 

“I did.”

 

Ryuu looks confused. “Why are your shoes soaked? Didn’t they give you a bag?”

 

Another noise comes from the box, but this one is a little more distinctive. Koushi knows what’s going on now, and he knows this is going to be an amazing opportunity. “Do your shoes meow?”

 

Kei stiffens. Ryuu looks between them gleefully while he waits for Kei’s response. “...Maybe.”

 

Koushi reaches out to lift the lid very carefully off the wet box. Six tiny wet little furballs shiver against each other in the meager shelter. Koushi lets out a gentle exhalation. “Ohhh.”

 

They’re barely kittens. Koushi can’t even tell if their eyes have opened yet or not. Ryuu peers into the box as well, careful to be very still and slow. They both turn their eyes up at Kei in amazement. Kei clears his throat. “I couldn’t just leave them in the alley to die. I’m not a monster.” Koushi hums and smiles for him to continue. “They need some stuff, so one of us needs to go to the store.”

 

Kei makes to hand the box to Ryuu, but Koushi nudges him gently over to get to his own shoes. “I’ll go. You’ve already been out in the rain too long. Go get dry.”

 

Ryuu takes the box gently so that Kei can use the towel to start to dry off. While Kei is hidden underneath it, he speaks in a disinterested voice, though Koushi can tell he’s really not. “They make kits with the kitten milk. Just get a couple of those and a few extra bottles.”

 

“Okay. Do they need anything else?” Koushi watches as Ryuu’s head comes up and his eyes alight.

 

“Some litter and wipes. Don’t bother with toys, they’re still too little.” Ryuu pouts a bit at Kei’s words.

 

Koushi pulls his coat on and grabs an umbrella. “Okay. I’ll be back soon. Go get warm.”

 

Kei grunts in acknowledgement. “Make sure it’s milk for kittens.”

 

A smile crosses Koushi’s face, he can feel it, and he’s glad Kei’s still under the towel or he’d be scowling at him. “Mmhmm.”

 

He’s almost out the door when Kei speaks up again. “Don’t forget the extra bottles.”

 

Koushi just barely holds back a laugh. “Got it.”

 

~~~

 

Kei hooks his glasses in his shirt collar while he rubs the towel over his head to get most of the rain out of his hair. He watches as Ryuu holds the box’s lid open just a bit and gazes at the kittens inside. The fond look on his face has Kei smiling, thinking how nice it is that he and Koushi get to see this side of him more than anyone else, the side where Ryuu is unexpectedly calm and concentrated. Kei wraps the towel around his shoulders and wanders into the house to get to the bathroom to take off the wet clothes.

 

He grimaces at the fact that even his boxers have been soaked through, but he knows it was worth it spending so much time in that dirty alley finding the tiny babies and making sure that their mama really wasn’t around. It meant a good deal of time standing in the pouring rain, but he couldn’t just leave them there, not so tiny and helpless, not when he was the only one who noticed the miniscule mewing noises in the first place. It was only his duty as a good person, after all.

 

Ryuu is gently cooing at the box when he comes back out from the bedroom, fully dry and in comfy clothes, and carefully sits on the couch with a couple of fresh towels, one of which he hands to Ryuu before gently plucking a single kitten out of the box. They work quietly to dry the kittens off, leaving them sitting in their laps to wait for Koushi to come back from the store. There’s one kitten on Kei’s lap, a gray and white thing that noses at Kei’s stomach, that he thinks is somehow very like Koushi.

 

An all black one is already attempting to climb up Ryuu’s closest available arm, and there’s a calico watching from Ryuu’s lap that barely has it’s eyes open that still looks as if it’s totally done with life in general. The one still in Kei’s hands is an orange tabby, while Ryuu dries off a black and white tuxedo, and there’s a lighter sand colored one still in the box, waiting for it’s turn through the towel. When they finally get done they each have three kittens taking up residence on them, most in their laps, with the exception of the adventurous black one, which is precariously balanced in the crook of Ryuu’s shoulder and neck.

 

Koushi gets back then, a couple of bags on his arm and a thoroughly wet umbrella in his hand, which he drops into the corner to drip on the floor of the entryway. He sheds his wet coat and shoes as well before heading over to them on the couch. He crouches in front of them, gently puts the bags on the floor and gazes at the tiny furry babies. Kei can see he still has sugar on his face and takes a corner of the towel to wipe it off. The smile Koushi gives him lights up the whole room and makes Kei’s heart warm.

 

Ten minutes later they all have two kittens each and a tiny bottle full of kitten milk, which they feed them carefully while Koushi and Ryuu hum and coo at the precious furry babies. Kei had always wanted to get a cat, ever since he was tiny, but with his mother as allergic to them as she was it was just something he put out of his mind as something he’d never be able to have. Watching Koushi and Ryuu interact with them, though, makes him think that maybe never was too strong of a thought. Maybe, just maybe, these two wonderful people would give him yet another thing he didn’t consider he could have, to fill his life with a little more warmth and color.

 

~~~

 

Ryuu tries very hard not to smile at the picture in front of him. Kei looks completely adorable in one of Ryuu’s old stretched out workout shirts, scrunchy sniffly face and bleary eyes and all. He watches as Kei wipes his nose again, barely attempts to throw it in the general direction of the wastebasket next to the bed that he’s half buried in. Ryuu carefully puts the tray he’s carrying down on the nightstand, and Koushi looks up from the bed, where Kei is draped across his chest and pretending not to be interested in the space documentary that Koushi’s got playing on the laptop.

 

Koushi runs his hands through Kei’s hair, nudges him to get him to sit up so that he can eat without choking or spilling it all over them both. Kei wrinkles his nose when Koushi teasingly asks him if Kei wants him to feed it to him, and then he promptly sneezes, just barely managing to cover his face with a new tissue. He sighs after, and makes adorable grabby hands at the food, obviously hungry even with as tired as he is. Ryuu does let the smile take over his face at that, and Kei notices, because he pouts.

 

It just makes him even cuter, honestly, but even sick, Kei is a force to be reckoned with when he’s teased. Ryuu hands Koushi a bowl so he can help Kei not drop it on himself, and he sits on the floor with own bowl, Koushi’s still on the nightstand waiting. After they all finish, Ryuu gets up to bring the dishes to the sink, but Kei grabs on to the bottom of his shirt. Koushi slips out of bed instead, lets Ryuu take his spot and balances the laptop on his lap before cleaning up. At Kei’s whine, which later he will completely deny, Koushi drops a kiss on both of their foreheads before wandering off.

 

Space movie playing again, Kei nestled against his chest, Ryuu wraps his arms around Kei and cards his fingers gently through his hair, soothing and methodical. Kei sniffles sleepily against his chest and Ryuu smiles, loves these moments that Kei shows only them, when he’s vulnerable and soft, moments that he knows each one of them cherish in their own way.

 

~~~

 

Koushi gazes up at Daichi from his incredibly comfortable (thank you very much) spot in the giant nest of blankets and pillows that they currently have condensed on the floor of the living room. Daichi raises an eyebrow at him from where he’s sat cross legged just outside the blankets. Kei nudges at Koushi’s side as he returns from the kitchen with a cup of something steaming, likely hot chocolate judging by the smell. Ryuu is perched on Koushi’s other side, working on something in his sketchbook, likely another drawing of Koushi as he’s fond of relaxing with.

 

Daichi sighs and strokes at the kitten in his lap. “So you found homes for them all, huh?”

 

Koushi grins. “Well, yes.” He scratches behind the ears of the calico purring happily on his chest. “This is Rose.” 

 

He looks over to Kei, who now has the tiny gray and white girl in his lap. Kei smiles a tiny little smile before he pipes up. “Lily.”

 

Koushi points at the troublemaker currently trying to help Ryuu draw. Ryuu laughs when he pencil is pulled from his fingers and then yelps when tiny teeth nip at him. “Bombshell! Easy, girl.” They all laugh as she tumbles off the sketchbook back into Ryuu’s lap and he retrieves his pencil before speaking again. “My sister took the orange tabby, named it Firecracker.”

 

Daichi snorts. The little tuxedo cat in his lap startles a little at the noise and he pets it in consolation. Kei makes a face that agrees with Daichi’s noise. “My brother took the lighter one. Princess.”

 

Ryuu laughs. “He said he wanted that one cause the fur color reminded him of Kei!” Kei glares at him and Ryuu quickly turns to Daichi. “What’re you gonna name yours, Daichi?”

 

The kitten seems to know he’s being talked about, because at that moment he turns his tiny face up towards Daichi. Koushi thinks it’s one of the cutest things he’s ever seen, aside from his boyfriends. Daichi brushes one finger gently over the tiny white patch that the kitten has over one eye. “Pirate.” The kitten mewls up at him, and then Rose meows at Koushi for moving too much when Koushi can’t help but to burst out in wild laughter at Daichi’s naming skills. “What? It’s appropriate.”

 

Koushi waves his hand at Daichi, still too breathless to do anything else. Rose settles down again when Koushi subsides into gentle giggles and strokes down her back. Ryuu studiously goes back to working on his drawing, though there’s a huge grin at the corners of his mouth that says he wants to laugh just as much. Kei huffs into his mug. “Did Kuroo have any input on that?”

 

Daichi frowns at his lap. Pirate stretches up and puts a single white socked paw against Daichi’s mouth and meows loudly. Even Kei laughs a little at that, and Daichi obviously can’t help the smile that stretches across his face. Koushi wiggles a little to get more comfortable in the blankets as Bombshell scampers across the floor to pounce on Pirate. Both his boys are happy and snug and smiling, and that’s good enough for Koushi to call the day a wonderful success.

 

~~~

 

Kei sighs in relief as he comes in the house, throwing a quick wave and hello at the living room as he ambles off down the hall toward the back of the house. He puts the camera bag he uses for work in his room, changes into sweats, and scoops up the polaroid camera perched on his desk before returning to the scene he walked past in the living room. Sure enough, he’s correct in what he thought he saw on his quick pass through the hall.

 

Ryuu and Koushi are sitting together on the couch, fingers twined together, practically in each other’s lap as they giggle and rub their noses together. Kei snaps a quick picture before they notice that he’s returned from changing. This is what he loves about being a photographer, the ability to capture moments like these for all time. He’s grateful again that Koushi bought him the polaroid camera, because these moments are the kind he can’t stand to wait to see printed and in his hands.

 

He waits for the moment it takes the image to appear, smiles at it when it finally shows up, Ryuu and Koushi with scrunched noses and bright grins, happiness and love clear on their faces. The clothesline against the far wall is already full, pictures Kei’s taken interspersed with sketches Ryuu’s done of the same moments, from a different perspective or lighting. Once in a while are tiny scraps of paper with stick figures or flourishy doodles on them that come from Koushi, who pouts that his boyfriends are so much more artistically talented than he is.

 

Kei leans over them to another clothesline, this one hanging above the couch, and snags a tiny clothespin to hang up the newest photo. After he gets it secured, two hands reach up to pull him down, and he nearly elbows Ryuu in the face on the way down, though he doesn’t seem at all disturbed by the possibility. Koushi takes the camera from him, and Kei already knows what he’s going to do. He and Ryuu both press messy kisses against Kei’s cheeks, and then Koushi hits the button and another photo emerges.

 

This one is not as clear as Kei’s previous one, just a tiny bit off center and a touch blurry, but even Kei can admit that it’s adorable. All of their faces are squished together, and Kei even has a smile as the other two cover his cheeks in kisses. In one corner of the photo is a tiny little tail, one of the kittens settled comfortably on the back of the couch. Koushi sighs a little wistfully as he hands both the camera and the picture over to Kei, likely lamenting his lack of talent in the photography department.

 

Kei hands the picture off to Ryuu, who stands to hook it to the clothesline, and Kei takes the opportunity to take another shot, this one of the cheesy grin Ryuu wears as he glances over the pictures that are already hung, including the one Kei just added. He laughs and waves his hand at Kei, gently takes the camera out of his hands and puts it on the side table before leaning down to capture Kei’s lips in a proper kiss.

 

Koushi takes over with his own kiss when Ryuu pulls back to speak softly. “Welcome home.”

 

~~~

 

Ryuu slides the balcony door shut behind himself so no curious little furballs follow him outside and hefts the full watering can up so that he can get to work making sure that none of Koushi’s precious plants goes too long without being watered. He knows that the weather had promised rain, but the day is almost done and there hasn’t been a cloud in sight. He hums to himself as he moves around the small space, thinks about the times they’ve spent out here huddled together under their biggest blanket, watching the stars, surrounded by Koushi’s flowers on all sides.

 

Koushi’s back from the store by the time Ryuu makes his way back into the house, and he can hear bags rustling in the living room. He puts the watering can away back under the sink, and wanders over to see what Koushi bought that has him giggling. When he gets in the doorway he sees even Kei is grinning, and that piques his curiosity even more. Koushi is still blocking his view though, so Ryuu moves to the side.

 

What he sees is not entirely something he expected. Rose is sitting between the two of them, looking entirely done with the world and everything in it, while Koushi finishes fastening the tiny little lion’s mane onto her. Kei already has the polaroid camera in his hands, along with a few pictures already in a pile next to his kneecap. Ryuu’s a little impressed at how well Rose seems to be going along with it all.

 

Bombshell is off to the side, half in a plastic bag that seems to be more entertaining than the cat toy next to it that it obviously came in. She turns around and sticks her head out, and Ryuu sees that she’s wearing a new collar. It’s hot pink and is studded with rhinestones, and the little tag hanging from the front is a tiny skull and crossbones with her name on it. It is absolutely the most perfect thing ever, and Ryuu couldn’t have picked one better if he had done it himself.

 

Lily sits in the space created by Kei sitting cross legged, and she sits contently in a tiny little hoodie, green with suspiciously familiar looking scales down the back. It only takes a second for Ryuu to realize that she’s dressed like the cutest T-Rex ever seen, children’s movies be damned. Kei looks extra pleased, though Ryuu is pretty sure he doesn’t realize that he’s grinning like the cat that got the canary. Ryuu gestures at the camera and Kei makes a face even as he hands it over.

 

A handful of pictures later all six of them are pleasantly warm and tired out from all the activities involving the toys that Koushi brought home. Bombshell still loves the plastic bag the most of everything, and Lily was perfectly content to snooze in Kei’s lap the whole time. Rose paraded around in the tiny mane for a while, and Ryuu is pretty sure that she knows she’s the king of pride here in their little home. Koushi can’t stop smiling, and even Kei still looks happier than most people ever see him. Ryuu thinks they look really good like that.

 

~~~

 

It’s warm and soft where Koushi is, and he opens his eyes slowly. He blinks a minute, and then realizes that he must have fallen asleep while putting away laundry in Kei’s bedroom, because he’s on Kei’s bed, shirt clutched in his hand. He sits up slowly, and then looks at the post it note haphazardly stuck to the back of his hand.

 

**_lunch is in the kitchen xo_ **

 

He smiles at Ryuu’s scrawly handwriting and yawns as he gets up, post it still in place. He gets another surprise when he gets back over to the laundry basket still half full. There’s a polaroid on top of the pile, obviously one taken just a while ago, of Koushi asleep on Kei’s bed, tshirt in hand. The bottom has a neat phrase written on it in marker.

 

**Thanks for the help.**

 

Koushi checks the time on the clock on the bedside table, and his stomach growls to let him know that yes, it IS time to eat. He scoops up the picture and makes his way to the kitchen. There’s another note on the doorframe, and another a bit down the hallway, and a few more by the time he makes it to the microwave. The one there simply says  **_3 minutes_ ** on it, and Koushi just leaves it there as he reheats his food.

 

By the time he’s done and has made his way to the living room, he realizes that he wasn’t as alone as he thought he was. Kei and Ryuu are leaning against each other on the couch, fast asleep. The kittens are perched and happily asleep on the back on the couch, and Koushi spies one last note on the empty spot of the couch next to Kei. This one has two sets of writing on it.

 

**Saved you a spot.**

 

**_we love you_ **

  
Koushi curls up in the spot and sighs as he closes his eyes, smile firmly etched on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to come yell at me on [tumblr](http://heyyyfuturefish.tumblr.com/).


End file.
